Batteries and Battery Life

Active member

Let's talk about batteries and battery life in general. I was shooting a marathon this morning and I tried to shoot it on one battery all morning. We are shooting on Sony XD-Cam F335's and using anton bauer hytron batteries 100, 120, and 140 (still don't know what those numbers mean).

Anyway, So right before the marathon runner crosses the finish line, the camera/ battery starts freaking out and the battery is only at 50 percent. Now I'm no math wiz, but 50 percent and 0 percent are 2 different things right?

Now I forgot a very basic rule, carry extra gear. I had my tripod, and my camera with battery attached and stick mic (it was for sports) so is there any suggestions in something you could buy/make to hold some more batteries? I"m not rich here I'm an intern but something cheap maybe?

Final question, these aren't lithium batteries right? So why should they degrade over time?

Well-known member

I don't know if this is the answer you're looking for....but there's alot of factors that we would need to be made aware of to properly answer this question....so here's my list....how old are this particular batteries? Older batteries won't last as long even after a "full charge"....something about the draining and the recharging overtime leads them down this path...I guess its just the wear and tear. Were they on the charger when you grabbed them? If they weren't it could be a combo of not charged and the previous answer. Is there a chief that you could ask about what might be wrong with these batteries? Sometimes they need a "rescue" from the charger to help with their battery life. I think you might get mixed answers on this part but I think its best to use the batteries to near empty whenever you can and then recharge them....I've been told that helps with their life. Charging a near full battery can do some weird things like quick draining in the field...wish I could explain but can't...maybe someone else can...see about that info and key us in some more.

Kyle...unfortunately it is a live and learn situation because nobody told you...you can only hope this doesn't happen at a major event that seriously impacts your stations coverage. Its happen to me...and I am sure it'll happen to someone else...hard lesson learned and its unfortunate.

Well-known member

I've found Anton Bauer batteries to be somewhat notorious for weird power level indications. The "50% to 0% instantly" sounds very familiar to me. I seem to not have nearly as many problems with other brands.

Personally, I think there's something wrong with the logic programmed into the chargers. They tend to be very flaky. It wouldn't surprise me if the chargers weren't screwing up not only in their diagnosis of the battery (i know they do this) but in the charging of it as well.

Regarding your question, just get a big waist pack from Kmart or something. Shouldn't cost you more than $10. You can easily fit a spare hytron and other assorted items in one.

Well-known member

Well-known member

I'm not a battery expert by any means, but with my BetaSX camera I know there are 3 ways to check the juice on my battery, and only one way thatâ€™s accurate. I use Anton Bauer 140s and always check those funky bars on the side of the battery to judge my juice. I can't rely on my viewfinder percentage, nor the tape/battery monitor on the side of the camera. It's burned me before.

The best advice I can offer is to know the tendencies of your gear. Know which batteries need to be replaced when you see 60% in your viewfinder (if that is how your are monitoring it) and which ones will keep the power flowing.

Member

1 trick I learned, to squeeze a few extra moments of life out of a battery, leave them exposed to direct sunlight for awhile, odds are it wouldn't have saved your shoot, but can sometimes revive them enough to give you that last, extra final shot.

Member

I had no idea that was important until I watched an engineer at our station go through a complete set-up of our own XDcams. In the camera menu is a whole list of what batteries the camera is set up to use. Some stations/people make the mistake of just taking the camera "as is" and slapping batteries on the back of it. You really need to make sure (and forgive me, you and your engineers may already have) that the correct battery is selected in that long list. It really affects the power consumption of specific batteries while on the camera. In today's world...there are a lot of different batteries available compared to the "old days".

Well-known member

A/B's are good for ABOUT three years of reliable service, then they start to fall on their faces. And it's the same every time when they "start to go", you'll have an indication of 30%-50% and all of a sudden(within 10-15 mins tops) it's toast. I have one that I pulled out of service last year and marked and only use it as a spare and I change it out when it hits 50%. I almost never go out on a shoot without three batteries and a charger. You do need to put them through a "learning" cycle on a charger that has a DDM(diagnostic and discharge module) installed when they(the batts) ask for it(slow blinking/flashing power meter display). And your question about what the numbers mean on the A/B batts: its the watt/hour rating. A Hytron 140 has 140 watt/hours of power, so if the battery is new and at full capacity you should be able to run a camera that draws, say 40 watts of power while on/recording, for 3- 3 1/2 hours. If there are other devices drawing power(wireless, top light, etc.), then you have to take that into account and factor them accordingly.